Thomas Michael Shumate Sentenced In U.S. District Court

The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Helena, on September 10, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, THOMAS MICHAEL SHUMATE, a 35-year-old resident of Red Lodge, was sentenced to a term of:

Prison: 27 months

Special Assessment: $100

Supervised Release: 3 years

SHUMATE was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to being a felon-in-possession of a firearm..

In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paulette L. Stewart, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:

In Nashville, Tennessee, SHUMATE was convicted of felony burglary to a vehicle in 2005, and in 2008 of felony burglary to a vehicle and felony theft, therefore prohibiting him from possessing firearms.

On September 20, 2012, the owner of the Red Lodge Antique Mall called law enforcement concerned about two firearms that they purchased from SHUMATE the previous day. The firearms were a Savage/Stevens, model 94 - Series P, .410 caliber, break-automatic shotgun, and a Savage, model III, .300 Win Mag caliber, bolt-automatic rifle.

Law enforcement later learned that the firearms were taken from a Red Lodge residence that SHUMATE was house-sitting.

Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that SHUMATE will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, SHUMATE does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.

The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Red Lodge Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.